Early Childhood Development

Instructor: GayLynn Ash

Do you enjoy working with children? The Early Childhood Development program offers students excellent opportunities to work with 3, 4 and 5-year old children. This class offers hands-on experiences teaching children in our preschool lab setting. All students experience planning and teaching activities in the areas of art, science, language, math and Pre-K skills geared to the development of the preschool age child. First year students have the opportunity to explore the wide array of career options that involve children, as well as learning to guide young children in their behavior. Second year students have internship opportunities in local pre-, elementary, and junior high schools available to them. All students will create a portfolio of lesson plans and activities that can be used in their future educational careers.

Our ECD classes attend field trips for both first and second year students to Early Childhood schools, as well as professional childcare settings, to broaden the experiences outside of our classroom. Both first and second year students may make use of articulation agreements with local community colleges.

This course also utilizes the Gateways to Opportunity program, which gives the students the opportunity to earn an ECE Credential Level 1 Certificate. Successful completion of this 48 hour training results in the award of the Level 1 ECE Credential, as well as the opportunity to use many scholarships available through the Gateways to Opportunity Scholarship Program, administered through INCCRRA (Illinois Network of Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies). (19054A001 & 19055A001)

Mrs. Ash can be reached at (815) 786-9873, extension 228 or via-mail at GAsh@kidsroe.org.